Struggling with shoulder pain? Let's take a look at what causes it. The first contributor is the muscle imbalances around your shoulder created as a result of spending a lot of time sedentary in poor positions. The second is what you do during your workouts, where you neglect the rotator cuff and scapular muscles. Combine these two, and shoulder impingement can occur. This can then lead to shoulder pain, especially when lifting your arm overhead or behind your back. The key to shoulder impingement treatment (or preventing this), and just keeping your shoulders healthy in general is quite simple. All it takes is 2 easy steps (that involve exercises and stretches) for some much-needed shoulder pain relief.

The first step for shoulder impingement treatment is to create more space in your shoulder joint to relieve the pinching on your tendon and the pain that you’re feeling. To do so, we need to activate the various muscles you’ve been neglecting and have weakened overtime. The first muscle, the lower traps, can easily be activated and strengthened with a simple bodyweight progression. Level 1 involves first lifting your chest off the ground slightly by using your mid back muscles, raising your arms up while turning your palms out, and then pulling your shoulder blades back and down as these are the two main functions of the lower traps. Hold this position for 10 seconds and then repeat for more reps. Move to the other progressions once you’re ready.

The next thing you want to do to relieve shoulder pain is to strengthen the serratus anterior. We’re going to first focus on activating it. First, assume a wall plank position with your forearms on the wall. Then, think about pulling your shoulder blades down and around your ribs by pushing away from the wall with your forearms. Hold this for 20-30 seconds and then repeat for more reps. Lastly, to strengthen the external rotators, we’ll perform the side lying external rotation. Simple rotate your arm upwards while keeping your elbow pinned to the side.

The next step is to address the root cause of your shoulder impingement, which lie in the various mobility restrictions that were created from a sedentary lifestyle. The two most problematic areas we’ll want to look at are the pecs and the mid-back. When the pecs are tight, they pull our shoulder into this forward rounded position. To help mobilize them, , all you need is a wall or something to prop your elbow against. Keep your elbow at 90 degrees, brace your core, and then lunge forward gently until you feel a stretch in your pecs. Then, slide your arm up and down slowly to stretch out the different fibres and muscles of your chest. Do this for 30-60 seconds and then switch sides.

We’ll then work on the mid-back to continue addressing your shoulder impingement issue with a thoracic extension move. To perform this movement, place your elbows on top of a bench or couch with your hands together. Sit your hips back into your heels and simultaneously drop your chest towards the ground. Hold that bottom position for a few deep breaths before repeating for more reps.

So, as a summary, here’s list of corrective exercises that you’ll want to run through for shoulder pain relief. Do this 2-3 times a day initially.

Part 1:
Lower Traps Exercise Progression: 10 reps with 5-10s pause at top
Serratus Anterior Wall Exercise: 5 reps with 20-30 second holds (progress to sliding version)
Side Lying External Rotation: 15-20 reps (progress to raising arm version)

Part 2:
Pec Stretch: 5-10 reps sliding up/down wall each arm
Thoracic Extensions: 10 reps with 2s pause at bottom

By implementing these two parts, you’ll be able to not only quickly relieve your shoulder but will also be addressing the root cause of the problem. It may sound tedious, but you won’t need to do these every single day indefinitely. If you choose the right exercises to include in your workouts, while making an effort to move more and be mindful of your posture throughout the day, you’ll be able to keep these muscles strengthened and prevent imbalances from occurring without having to do a ton of different corrective exercises every day.

And for a step-by-step program that uses science to show you exactly how to transform your body as efficiently as possible without overlooking key muscles that make all the difference, then simply take the analysis quiz to discover which science-based program would be best for you and where your body is currently at below:
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